The father of the lost ATO combatant addressed Chuhuiv human rights group with a request to help establish the fact of his son’s participation in military operations when being in ATO zone, and also the fact of his death during combats in the temporarily occupied territory when performing a combat mission.

Last year in November Valery Holodnyak’s story, who couldn’t receive the ATO combatant status for several months, was published on the Legal Scope web portal. The reason is the military units where he served did not submit necessary papers. They were not registered in time and the soldier was simply forgotten about.

Over 100 soldiers visit daily a volunteer point of aid to ATO participants at the Southern Station in Kyiv. Some people are going to ATO zone, others are coming back home. They can drink tea, wait for the train, talk to other combatants, charge their mobile phones, read some useful literature at the recreation point.

Valery Holodnyak, resident of Golopristansky district in Kherson region fails to issue the ATO combatant status for several months. The reason is the military units where he served do not send necessary references. They were not done in time, and now the soldier feels like everyone just forgot about him.

Employees of Kherson bus station ignore requirements of law. To use the right of preferential journey in long-distance transport, parents of the lost ATO participant are forced to make two documents – the certificate and the reference. But even these two documents did not convince the cashier to sell the discount ticket (See “Two certificates for one lost”).

Iosif Matkovsky was mobilized in September, 2014. He spent several months in ATO zone, near Marynka. At the end of December he got a heart attack. He underwent treatment and rehabilitation during three months. Iosif was granted the status of service-disabled veteran only on November 2, 2015, as officials hesitated about making the relevant decision.

Owing to occupation of the Crimea in March-May, 2014 more than 10000 Crimeans moved from the peninsula to continental Ukraine. In June tens of thousands of residents of Donbas who left their homes in ATO zone moved to Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Odesa, Kherson and other regional centers of the South and East of the country. During all the time since 2014 as a result of aggression of the Russian Federation in the territory of Ukraine about 2.5 million people moved from temporarily occupied territories.

To establish cooperation and unite efforts between representatives of non-governmental organizations, voluntary movements and authorities that are engaged in providing free legal aid to ATO participants in round table was held on July 7 in the building of Ukrinform.